


Taking Time Out

by Kalira



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Holding Hands, Kissing, Ocean, Post-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-04
Updated: 2018-04-04
Packaged: 2019-04-18 01:00:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 690
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14201601
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kalira/pseuds/Kalira
Summary: Katara and Aang take a little time on a beach between diplomatic duties to relax and justbe.





	Taking Time Out

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Turnshroud](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Turnshroud/gifts).



> Written for a request from AvatarSymbolism on Tumblr, from this [list of fluff/smut GIF starters](http://kalira9.tumblr.com/post/172522135704/fluff-and-smut-drabblesstarters).
> 
> Original request [here](http://kalira9.tumblr.com/post/172599787784/kataang-11).

Katara grinned as Aang darted back to her side from over the water, the wind he brought along with him snatching at her hair and tossing it wilder. Aang returned the grin with a bright one of his own as he caught her by the hand, squeezing.

She rubbed her thumb over his in response before tugging him along with her as she kept walking. Katara smiled peacefully, tipping her head back. The quiet roar of the nearby surf called to her heart and soothed her spirit at once, but even more than that. . . Simply _being_ . . . here and calm and free - hand in hand with Aang. . .

Katara leaned in and kissed his cheek, and he startled, looking at her, his smile still wide and his eyes bright and happy. “What was that for?” he asked lightly, twining their fingers more snugly together.

“I’m just happy.” Katara said honestly, and hummed when Aang stepped in even closer, sliding his free hand over her bare waist to rest on her back.

“Me too.” Aang said, simple and just _understanding_. He kissed her and she leaned into him, sighing softly, heart squeezing at the look in his eyes.

Aang rubbed her back, peppering soft, playful kisses across her cheek and making her laugh. She reached up to cup his cheek, stilling him for a real kiss before drawing away even as he made a soft sound of pleasure.

Aang pouted briefly before they walked on, the wet sand smooth under their feet. He swung their joined hands, and Katara smiled as she breathed deeply of the sea air. She liked travelling - which was good, as she and Aang were _always_ moving, it seemed - but nowhere felt quite so _right_ as returning to the sea, even if it wasn’t back home at the South Pole.

“I’ll be sorry when we need to move on again, I guess.” Aang said, watching her.

It would be soon, Katara knew, they’d been here for several days already, mostly just taking a break. She shrugged. “When we do, we do. Soon enough, but for now. . .” She moved ahead of Aang, raising their clasped hands and twirling under his arm with a grin. “We can just relax and enjoy it.” she said, pulling him after her a little faster.

Aang smiled back at her, his eyes warm. “Yeah. We can.” he said fondly.

A familiar sound caught her ear and Katara looked out over the sea. A heavy Fire Nation ship was sailing steadily into view, probably heading for the nearest large city, half a day’s flight further down the coast.

The war was so long behind them now that Katara’s first thought wasn’t _hide_ or _danger_ , or even anger. Instead she was reminded of how long it had been since they had seen Toph - who refused to set foot on a ship except when absolutely necessary, and then kept to the Fire Nation’s iron cruisers - and of the year and more immediately after the war ended that had been spent negotiating travel for those displaced by it. Zuko had sent his navy’s largest ships, mostly stripped of weaponry, and Aang and Katara had gone ahead of them, assuring safety and promising freedom. Travelling alongside refugees once more, but this time openly and in peace.

Katara, Aang, and their friends had all worked so hard and for so long that when the war was over, as exhausting as the prospect of yet more travel and work was . . . none of them would have known what to do with themselves, Katara thought, without those demands on them.

Even now it was a little difficult for Katara to remember they _could_ relax, lay around . . . do whatever they wanted. At least some of the time. She smiled at Aang; though he had near-endless duties to the world and would never shirk them, he never failed to remind her to still take time to simply enjoy life, to play and laugh and be impulsive.

Katara tugged at Aang’s hand as she took off running down the beach, laughing as the sea spray flew higher in an expression of her joy, sparkling in the sun.

**Author's Note:**

> The request was for #11 from that list of GIF starters, which is this one:   
> Which is really quite perfect for Katara and Aang, I thought.
> 
> Come find me on [Tumblr](http://kalira9.tumblr.com/) to say hi, to chat fandom, or to request a story!


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